To get more people interested in what new sheds we have on readersheds.co.uk and to create a Buzz for the upcoming Shed of the Year 2008 competition.

I have devised a competition, you send us your email, we send you an updated list of the newest sheds on readersheds.co.uk, your email will get entered into a competition to win £30 of amazon co.uk vouchers between now and May 1st 2008.

Enter your email address to subscribe to the latest Sheds from readersheds.co.uk

Delivered by FeedBurner

The email is stored by Feedburner and I will only use it to send you the Sheds feed and pick one random one to win the amazon voucher.

Of course if you dont want to receive the RSS feed of sheds by email you can subscribe by adding it to your RSS reader but you wont be entered into the comp.

Shed tags: Competitions > Shed Week 2008 by Wilco
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Our Dr of Sheds as I unfairly call her, Kathryn Ferry has answered my Q &A and we look forward to her views during Shed week on all things hut.

Q) To you what sums up a beachut?

It’s a seaside escape, a place you can make your own and retreat to for a bit of relaxation. There is no better place from which to watch the weather change or listen to the crash of waves on the beach. Conversely a beach hut can also be really sociable because owners have a great community spirit. For me beach huts offer a splash of colour right on the country’s edge and I love the fact that such a small and basic building can be a genuine icon!

Q) Do you feel that beach hut ownership is currently pricing normal people out of the market?

Prices have got a bit mad recently but at least it’s a sign that beach huts and the British seaside are desirable again. It’s most frustrating when you read about waiting lists up to ten years long and then walk along the prom to find loads of the huts locked up! Some councils let their huts for short periods but even at places like Southwold, where most are privately owned, you can still get the use of a hut for your holiday. Tourist offices can give advice about this and owners also advertise their huts for hire on www.beach-huts.com Even if you would prefer to have your own, the hire option is definitely worth investigating because that way you get the benefits without having to spend your weekends doing repairs and painting!

Q) What one bit of advice would you give to potential beach hut owners?

Make sure that you live close enough to your hut to enjoy it as much as possible! People have good intentions when they get their own hut but if it’s too far away you’ll have to plan trips instead of just going when the sun shines.

Q) What’s the most useful thing to have in your beach hut?

A gas stove. It makes the difference between a place to store stuff and a kind of home from home. With a stove you can brew that all-important cup of tea and it’s also a good heat source when the weather turns chilly. Just make sure that you always keep it turned off when you’re not using it otherwise the next question will be all too relevant…

Q) If your beachhut was on fire, what one thing would you save?

This is going to sound totally cheesy, but I’d save the memories. Beach huts are generally more at risk of destruction than your average shed because of the fact they’re built next to the sea. Storm damage is a real threat and vandalism is sadly all too common. All of which means that keeping things of value in your hut is not necessarily the best idea. It’s the good times you have in your hut that make you love it!

Q) What would be your ultimate bolthole/shed-away-from-it-all and where would it be?

It would obviously have to be by the sea but I’m not sure I’d really want to be completely away from it all. I like to people watch and see boats passing on the horizon. Even though I’ve visited beach huts around the world my ultimate would still probably be in England. I love the East Anglian coast and I’d probably pick Felixstowe. It would be great to have a designer beach hut but if it was really going to be my ultimate then I think I’d actually have a go at building it myself.

Shed tags: Beachhuts > Kathryn Ferry > Shed Week 2008 by Wilco
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Alex from shedworking.co.uk one of our Shed of the year judges, has kindly answered my questions, be warned he uses big words ;), which I assume means that if you are a shedworker then your vocabulary increases.

Q) What one bit of advice would you give to potential shed workers.

A) Spend time looking around for the right kind of garden office. There are so many on the market with so many different features (do you want a green roof? a mezzanine level? a curved wall? a roof with a cupola? eco-friendly insulation? folding doors?) that there’s no point jumping straight in without doing some research first, especially since you’ll probably be paying £10,000+ for your lovely new shedlike atmosphere.

Q) Are Garden offices are the new “middle class sheds” or something else?

A) I hope not. I certainly don’t see ownership of a garden office as a class badge, rather as a democratic symbol of the general working population’s desire to push through a revolution in alternative workplaces, although it must be said that garden offices do tend to be owned by those in typically middle-class professions: but I do think they’re more of an indication that as a nation we’re becoming fed up of needless presenteeism in centralised offices and want something more human and more flexible as a daily workspace.

Q) What the most useful thing to have in your shedworking environment,apart from the shed.

A) Personally, a MacBook Pro laptop. I literally couldn’t work without it (even though the iSight function is currently up the spout).

Q) If your shed was on fire, what one thing would you save

A) Depending on where the fire broke out, my copy of Richard Ford’s The Handbook for Travellers in Spain (1845) which is on the back wall. If that’s where the fire broke out, then the box of old photos under my desk (front wall).

Q) What would be your ultimate bolthole/shed-away-from-it-all and where would it be?

A) I’d love something underground with tunnels and an underground swimming pool and snooker room, nothing too fancy. Under my present shed, or failing that, inland Spain, about an hour’s drive east of Madrid in the Alcarria region.

Q) How happy are you, working from your shed!

A) Very happy. I’m surrounded by my favourite books, photos of family and friends, with a pleasant view of the garden and within easy striking distance of a fridge. I don’t think I could go back to a ‘traditional’ office now - I’ve been deinstitutionalised.

Thanks to Alex and remember to pre order his book!

Shed tags: Shed Week 2008 > Shedworking by Wilco
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This years gone so quick already, I can’t believe there is only 4 months until Shed Week 2008.

Get a shedlife Wilco I hear you shout.

I want shed week this year to be better than last year.

Ok I may try and be organised for it, but there is the chance that it will all come together in the week before as it did last year

Of course we already have some great sheds up for the title including my Weekly reviews and lots from last year.

anyway if you have not shared your shed, then get in there now.

Shed tags: Shed Week 2008 by Wilco
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I am pleased to announce that last years Shed of the year winner Tony is going to be one of the judges for this years Shed of the Year.

Tony will be able to give his sheddies eye view on the potential winners to take his wreath (sorry crown).

We know have a great selection of judges for this years event, Sarah Beeny, Trevor Baylis, Alex from shedworking and Professor beach hut Kathryn Ferry.

Shed tags: Shed of the Year > Shed Week 2008 > Tony by Wilco
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Our friends over at Thurgarton Iron Works have got themselves a Sales & Marketing Director to look after their interests in Shed of the year 2008, I wish I could bankroll a expert in that field

His first remit will be to concentrate his Monster marketing efforts on the upcoming Readers Sheds competition and the launch of Thurgarton Iron Works into the super-stratosphere of the higher echelons of this world renowned event. You will all remember Miss Bottifont galloping into first place in the “Hut” section last year and the media frenzy surrounding that. This year it could be world domination and with Monster determination and the dedication of Team Thurgarton and all you lovely Shepherds Hut supporters

UPDATE

The Sales & Marketing Director reading this blog

Shed tags: Shed of the Year > Shed Week 2008 by Wilco
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National Shed week is not just about the traditional British garden sheds, we welcome sheds/barns and outhouses from all round the world.

There will be a special prize for best international shed during the 2nd annual Shed Week as the main Shed of the year is only open to UK sheds.

So get along to www.readersheds.co.uk and share your shed.

Some great examples of international sheds are the Eco shed, Compo Shed, Stu’s Shed, Cedar shed and of course Office full of sheds, so thats the US, OZ, NZ, Canada and Japan to name a few.

Shed tags: Shed Week 2008 by Wilco
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Shedweek has been included on a wonderful website wot I found called Count me in.

I am always forgetting when important things are happening like, the World’s Biggest Curry Lunch, Cider & Perry Month and even World Toilet Day.

Worth a look, but I spend ages on there finding out some great Days/Weeks around.

of course If I can come up with a worthy week then its worth looking around to see what other great things are out there.

Shed tags: Shed News > Shed Week 2008 > ShedWeek by Wilco
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I recently ask Trevor some questions mostly shed related but of course some about his inventions.

His workshop sounds great, just got to get him to share it when he has time.

Q1) When did you first start inventing or making things?

A. When I was a child I could do the most amazing things with my Meccano but I couldn’t even write my name. I was five years old.

Q2) Did your workshop/shed play a major part in your ideas process?

A. Certainly – my workshop contains a multitude of machines, and is the graveyard of 1000 domestic appliances. I have a small tv, a computer should I need it, and of course a radio. And I can always sit down in a comfortable chair and smoke my pipe, and can always have a cup of tea when I want one.

Q3) What one bit of advice would you give to sheddie inventors?

A. Let your dreams be your inspiration, and a springboard for great actions.

Q4) You were Pipe Smoker of the Year a few years ago.. will you be coming up with a smoker’s device to get over the recent changes in the law?

A. Well, I certainly won’t be smoking outside my shed, but I might put a fan in the window.

Q5) With your eco self-powered inventions and green credentials before it was fashionable, do you feel the rest of the industry is playing catchup?

A. To an extent, yes! And I am very proud that they are.

Q6) What’s the future for shed-based inventors or do you see the demise of the one man in his workshop?

A. I believe those people who have sheds, studios, or laboratories, are the lucky ones. It is great for a man or a woman to have a retreat or somewhere to chill out and ferment. This will always be a necessity in life for people.

Q7) What would be your ultimate bolthole/shed-away-from-it-all and where would it be?

A. I wouldn’t want to walk down a garden to get to my retreat – mine is attached to my house. If I want to go into my studio in the night when I have that bright idea, I am able to do so without having to wear wellington boots. My studio has stunning views of the river, is cosy, and believe it or not – the floor has a carpet!!!

And to finish, some questions from sheddies:

Q: If your shed was on fire, what one thing would you save?
(From Alex from Shedworking.co.uk)

A. Undoubtedly, my first prototype wind-up radio, which also functions as a wind-up torch and mobile phone charger.

Q: Has your moustache ever got tangled up in one of those new fangled wind-up radios (From Chris)

A. My moustache never entwined with the machinery but a spark or two from my pipe could have easily given me a harelip, then I might have taken a turn for the nurse.

Many thanks Trevor.

You can read more about Trevor Baylis and his products over at http://www.trevorbaylisbrands.com/, which has some great advice for sheddie inventors and of course details of the products, Trev has been involved with.

and of course keep an eye on this shedblog for Trevor Related posts.

Shed tags: Shed News > Shed Week 2008 > ShedWeek > Trevor Baylis by Wilco
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